Sneasel Line/DPPt
One more of Silver's stubs (because Silver can't git gud and just review the truckload of finished analyses already) Sneasel can be found on Routes 216 and 217, Acuity Lakefront, Lake Acuity, and in the Snowpoint Temple (which, however, is post-game). Its encounter rates vary from place to place, and it is generally more common during the day than at night. The highest encounter rate in Platinum is 35%, on Route 216, whereas in Diamond and Pearl it is 25% in all locations during the daytime. Many games don't allow access to Ice-types at all, or if they do, it's not too far from the endgame. Sinnoh is no exception to that rule, but it does make Ice Pokémon a lot more accessible, with a good few areas entirely dedicated to them. Sneasel is fairly easy to find, though not as much to catch; it will need to be weakened in moderation, so as to not faint it accidentally. After getting one, however, it will prove to be a great ally in its niche. Sadly, the whole line gets nothing more than Ice Shard in Diamond and Pearl as far as Ice STAB goes, although Platinum is definitely better: Ice Punch is also available, even before reaching the point in the game where Sneasel can be caught. Needless to say, it's a line with many weaknesses, one of which is a crippling double weakness to a fairly common and powerful type (Fighting), which makes Weavile frailer than its stats would suggest. However, for experienced players, and players who know what they're doing at exactly every single given point in the game, Weavile is a trustworthy ally, not to mention one of those that can take down some really crippling threats to any team with much more ease than any other available Pokémon could, even its own Ice colleagues. Important Matchups * Gym #7 - Candice (Snowpoint City, Ice-type): * Cyrus (Galactic HQ): * Commander Saturn (Galactic HQ): * Commander Mars and Commander Jupiter (Spear Pillar, double battle): * Cyrus (Spear Pillar/Distortion World): * Dialga/Palkia/Giratina (Spear Pillar/Distortion World): * Gym #8 - Volkner (Sunyshore City, Electric-type): * Rival (Pokémon League, pre-Elite Four): * Elite Four Aaron (Pokémon League, Bug-type): * Elite Four Bertha (Pokémon League, Ground-type): * Elite Four Flint (Pokémon League, Fire-type): * Elite Four Lucian (Pokémon League, Psychic-type): * Champion Cynthia (Pokémon League): * Post-Game: Moves Most Sneasels start off with a combination of Fury Swipes, Agility, Icy Wind, and either Faint Attack or Slash. Unfortunately, there isn't much more in store for this line, as far as level-up moves go. The very low Special Attack makes special moves just plain unusable, and both Slash and Faint Attack are the best you can get until you evolve. The best option is to evolve Sneasel at level 35 if you're playing Platinum, so that it can learn Night Slash right after becoming a Weavile; the critical hit rate is "only" 12.5% in this generation when not boosted, but the STAB and base power are nice and will last for a good while, especially at this level. If you're playing Diamond and Pearl, you're likely better off waiting, for reasons that will be explained shortly. At level 38, Sneasel gets Beat Up and Weavile gets Fling; neither move is really worthy of mention, since you should already have good Dark STAB at this point. Metal Claw comes at level 42 for both Pokémon, and the last level-up move is Ice Shard for Sneasel and Dark Pulse for Weavile. This is a crucial point in favour of a delayed evolution in Diamond and Pearl, as Ice Shard is the ONLY physical Ice move the line can get, and Weavile doesn't have access to it. Platinum is another story (thankfully), due to the Ice Punch tutor being available as soon as after reaching Pastoria, which is long before Sneasel even becomes available. There isn't much else to do with this line besides slapping a lot of TMs on it. Brick Break is excellent for coverage purposes, especially paired with Dark STAB; it gives perfect coverage to Weavile. Dig is also an option, thanks to the enhanced base power in this generation, if you don't have anything else to counter Electric-types. Aerial Ace and X-Scissor are both good moves, but their coverage is outclassed by Ice and Dark respectively, so you'll probably want to save them for a Pokémon that needs better moves, instead of spending them on your weasel. If you're feeling brave, or have a sturdier than usual Weavile, you can also consider the Substitute and Focus Punch combo. A noteworthy move that Weavile gets through the Move Reminder is Nasty Plot. It actually makes special TMs such as Ice Beam and Focus Blast much more viable, and basically achieves the same coverage level as the physical variant, except with a higher base power for all moves. The point, however, is that Weavile also gets Swords Dance via TM, and that makes up for a much better option than any Special Attack boosting move in general, since its Attack is almost twice as much as its Special Attack in its natural state. The Platinum tutors are a major selling point for this line in the game: it gets Ice Punch for a handful of Shards, which is the only decent physical move the line can learn in terms of Ice STAB. Diamond and Pearl players are, sadly, stuck with Sneasel's level-up Ice Shard, if they want any physical Ice move at all. Recommended Moveset: Swords Dance, Night Slash, Ice Punch Platinum / Ice Shard and Pearl, Brick Break Other Stuff Sneasel's base stats Weavile's base stats * What Nature do I want? Adamant, definitely. Weavile is a physical sweeper, and can't use its Special Attack to save its life. Failing that, Lonely and Naughty will also work, although the latter will make a much less welcome dent in its actually good defensive stat; Brave is also okay, as its Speed is high enough as is, and will probably not need further boosts to fight much of anything. * Which Ability do I want? Inner Focus and Keen Eye are both fairly situational on Sneasel, and Weavile only has pressure. Whichever you get doesn't really matter in the long run, as neither is all that useful. * At what point in the game should I be evolved? Anywhere up to level 35 is the best option for Platinum, as it allows you to access Night Slash without needing the Move Reminder for that. A later evolution is also fine, though, since you'll only need one more Heart Scale for its best level-up move. In general terms, do it as soon as you can; Sneasel is frail, and Weavile has better chances of surviving untimely critical hits. However, if you're playing Diamond or Pearl, the story is different - the only sensible idea is to wait until level 49 for the evolution, as that's when Sneasel gets its literally only physical Ice move accessible in the game. Yes, physical Ice coverage is that bad. * How good is the Sneasel line in a Nuzlocke? Its stats are heavenly for nuzlockers, but it's crippled by lacking access to moves that have a powerful enough base power. The nifty coverage partially compensates for it, but with the double weakness to Fighting and all the other weaknesses to account for, using Weavile often is risky at best. However, if you have good knowledge of the game and know your enemies well, it becomes a powerful ally, especially for the ever-dreaded Champion's ace, which it can easily eat alive in one punch. * Weaknesses: Fighting (x4), Rock, Bug, Steel, Fire * Resistances: Ghost, Ice, Dark * Immunities: Psychic * Neutralities: Normal, Flying, Poison, Ground, Water, Grass, Electric, Dragon Category:Dark-Type Category:Ice-Type Category:Sinnoh Category:Diamond/Pearl/Platinum